Government

UAB, Some Downtown Businesses Close in Response to Rumors of Violence; Woodfin Stresses City Will Enforce Protest Rules

Anxiety grew in downtown Birmingham Thursday afternoon as rumors spread of potentially violent protests. These rumors — which included that a Ku Klux Klan rally would take place in Linn Park — led several businesses, including the University of Alabama at Birmingham, to shut down earlier than usual. Mayor Randall Woodfin dismissed these rumors as false in a video address Thursday afternoon, but he said his curfew — which includes significant restrictions on public assembly in the city — would continue to be strictly enforced by police. Read more.

by Sam Prickett

Fencing Erected Around Downtown Parks to Discourage Gatherings

Fencing has been placed around Birmingham’s Linn Park “to ensure unregistered gatherings do not occur,” Mayor Randall Woodfin’s office announced Thursday, and fencing is going up around Kelly Ingram Park. Linn Park, which lies between City Hall and the Jefferson County Courthouse, was the location of violent protests Sunday night over the police killing of Minneapolis man George Floyd, which led to the city taking down a Confederal monument there. Meanwhile, rumors have been rampant that violence is expected in downtown today, but whether that is based in fact is unclear. Woodfin’s office earlier today denied that there were plans to “shut down” the city Thursday afternoon “due to potential unrest.” Read more.

by Sam Prickett

Finding A Way Forward in Birmingham After Violence and Destruction

A Confederate monument that stood in a downtown Birmingham’s Linn Park for 115 years is now gone. Crews removed the structure following protests over police treatment of black Americans that turned destructive on Sunday, damaging many buildings. This happened in a city that prides itself on its history of nonviolent protest during the civil rights era. Rev. Thomas Wilder leads Bethel Baptist Church in Collegeville. It’s the same church Birmingham civil rights leader Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth once led. Wilder spoke with WBHM’s Andrew Yeager. Read more.

by Andrew Yeager, WBHM

FunnyMaine Talks About New Monument, How Second Protest Happened

Jermaine "FunnyMaine" Johnson, Birmingham native and comedian involved in Sunday night’s protest over the Confederate monument in Linn Park, said Wednesday that whatever replaces that monument should represent what Birmingham is all about — "unity, strength, resilience." He called for the removal of the monument during an earlier rally in Kelly Ingram Park but did not foresee the response that his call would receive. Read more and watch two videos.

by Tom Gordon

Woodfin Adds Exception to Demonstration Ban

Mayor Randall Woodfin has walked back his total ban on public gatherings and demonstrations in Birmingham, allowing permitted demonstrations in one park in the North Avondale neighborhood. In a statement released Wednesday afternoon, Woodfin said his office would allow permitted demonstrations to take place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in W.C. Patton Park, at 1200 Sipsey Street. “We want to balance the right to assembly with the absolute need for public safety,” Woodfin said in the statement. Read more. More stories on the protests in Birmingham: Curfews Imposed Across Birmingham Area Over Protests Jefferson County Sets Curfew to Curb Violence Confederate Monument Taken Down in Linn Park Cleanup Begins After Looting Damages Downtown Birmingham Businesses Birmingham Protestors Vandalize Downtown Buildings, Try to Take Down Confederate Monument

by Sam Prickett

Woodfin Says He Received Death Threats After Removal of Monument

Responding to questions this morning on the NBC Today show, Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin said he received death threats in response to his order to take down a Confederate monument in the wake of destructive protests Sunday night. “Unfortunately, in the state of Alabama, there's a lot of people who like to participate in revisionist history,” Woodfin said, speaking with host Al Roker. “They believe it's American to support the Civil War as relates to these competitive monuments. They're mad because we took the statue down and, yes, there have been several threats. Read more.

by Solomon Crenshaw Jr.

Curfews Imposed Across Birmingham Area Over Protests

Birmingham finished removing the base of the Confederate monument in Linn Park this morning after working for more than 24 hours to take down the structure that had become a lightning rod for racial protest in the city. Mayor Randall Woodfin agreed to remove the monument after a crowd of protestors were drawn to the park Sunday night to try to topple it. They covered it in graffiti and chipped out chunks of it, along with taking down another statue and defacing two more. As they left the park, they set small fires and smashed windows of some downtown businesses. In reaction, Birmingham and other cities on Tuesday declared and extended curfews aimed at shutting down such violent protests. Woodfin announced he was expanding the city’s curfew, covering the period of 7 p.m. to 6 a.m., to include a 24-hour prohibition on “gatherings, parades, marches and demonstrations … on any public property or public street.” The Jefferson County Commission also issued a curfew from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. through June 9, affecting unincorporated areas of the county and any cities that want to apply it. Read more. More stories on the protests in Birmingham: Jefferson County Sets Curfew to Curb Violence Confederate Monument Taken Down in Linn Park Birmingham Mayor Sets out Curfew from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. Cleanup Begins After Looting Damages Downtown Birmingham Businesses Birmingham Protestors Vandalize Downtown Buildings, Try to Take Down Confederate Monument Protesters Gather in Birmingham to Honor George Floyd

by Sam Prickett, Solomon Crenshaw Jr. and Glenn Stephens

Jefferson County Sets Curfew to Curb Violence

Following the lead of Birmingham and other municipalities in the metro area, the Jefferson County Commission today implemented an emergency curfew to thwart violent, destructive acts like those seen Sunday night. “This coincides with the curfews of many of our municipalities,” Commission President Jimmie Stephens said at an emergency commission meeting, “and is an effort to unify our response to this crisis.” Read more.

by Solomon Crenshaw Jr.

Confederate Monument Removed From Linn Park — Mostly

All that’s left of the Confederate memorial in downtown Birmingham’s Linn Park is a graffiti-covered base. The obelisk was taken apart and loaded onto a flatbed truck Monday night, a day after it sparked protests and looting of nearby businesses. Mayor Randall Woodfin had promised to remove the monument by Tuesday to stop any more of the violent reactions like those seen Sunday night. Read more. More on the protests in Birmingham Confederate Monument Taken Down in Linn Park Birmingham Mayor Sets out Curfew from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. Cleanup Begins After Looting Damages Downtown Birmingham Businesses Birmingham Protestors Vandalize Downtown Buildings, Try to Take Down Confederate Monument Protesters Gather in Birmingham to Honor George Floyd

by Virginia Martin

Confederate Monument Taken Down in Linn Park

A controversial Confederate monument in downtown Birmingham's Linn Park was taken apart and loaded onto a flatbed truck Monday night, a day after it sparked protests and looting of nearby businesses. Mayor Randall Woodfin promised to remove the m0nument by Tuesday to stop violence in Birmingham's downtown, and heavy equipment was moved into the park Monday evening. The top of the obelisk was down by about 10 p.m., and the second of three sections was removed shortly after 11 p.m. By 2:30 a.m., the third section was gone, meaning the full obelisk was gone and workers were left with the base of the statue. Read more.

by Virginia Martin and Tom Gordon